We stayed at a pretty high-end hotel with an insanely well trained staff.  It went way beyond the little touches.

For example, every time I called down stairs they would answer the phone ” Hello, Mr Snell how may we assist you?”   Lucky for them Rob and I have the same last name.  It was neat to watch it.  I am a bit of a Customer Service junkie and I like to find folks that are good at it.

I also like to find the holes.

The moment it all fell apart was 4:20 am the morning we left.  I got my wake up call on time and I even got the backup call they recommended since my call was at 4 am.

When I called down to the front desk to arrange for a cab to the airport I got no answer. It took 4 calls to the front desk to get someone on the phone. Once I did she was perfect just like every other time.

It placed an odd moment in an otherwise very “high level service” experience.  I also was impressed at the greetings we got from the staff on our way out at the early hour.

My expectation of service was raised by the hotel and I was quite annoyed when they dropped the ball.  It was really out of place.

It brought up two emails that I got earlier that week that I think require at least some examination.

The first customer started out his email with the sentence. “I doubt there is little chance this email will actually get to Steve Snell but…..”  He went on to ask some questions about the differences between the Tri-tronics Sport Basic G3and the SportDOG 1825 that I use. Most of his questions where based on the use of vibration and training.

I once answered the majority of the emails. Well, that’s not totally true. When my father was alive, he did a big part of them.

Later I brought in folks to do the easy ones.  Tracking numbers and basic questions.

Today we have 5 folks that over see email plus me. We get a bunch and I expect them to be answered quickly.

I do still see every email and every answer. I still answer my share (even some of the easy ones) and sometimes I’ll add additional info emails if I feel our answer needs some clarification.

Email is one of the biggest ways we interact with our customers and it’s important.  We are nowhere as good at it as I would like to be, but I think we do a good job.

The other email came from a customer that had some issues with an automatic waterer he had just received in the mail.

Based on his multiple emails and the level of detail in his email there was no question he had put in the effort to get the product to work. It was a dud product.  It happens.

My issue was that he  felt he was “getting ripped off.”

I am always amazed how folks expect to get screwed in business transaction. Sometimes it’s the first thing they run to without ever giving us the chance to make it right.

I have to be real careful how I deal with these folks because I sometimes take their reaction the wrong way.

Our family has been in the mail order business for 37 years. We have not done it by ripping folks off.  Our goal is to sell a high quality product and give a high level of service. Before and after the sale.

Does it always work out?  I wish.

Mistakes happen. Defective products happen. Sometimes things out of our control make the buying experience less than pleasant.

All I want is a chance to make it right. If we can, we will.  It’s not real common in today’s market, but it is how we run our company.

I emailed the customer (midnight on a Friday while I was 1000 miles away from the warehouse) just to let him know we would correct the issue to his satisfaction.

He was pleased (and a little surprised) that we responded at all…..

Steve Snell – Gun Dog Supply

Post from: Steve Snell's Gundog Blog

Customer Expectations….

If I can drive it I will. 14 hours from Starkville is my cutoff.  I find that I can’t do more than that in a day and be worth much the next few days.

One of the joys of flying out of this part of the world is that you can’t get a direct flight any where.  Everything has a connection.  Nothing better than flying from Starkville to Atlanta, waiting an hour and then flying back over Mississippi to get to the west coast. 

If you want to fly west, you have to drive to Jackson or Memphis.  That’s a couple of hours there and back.  It really adds to the trip.

14 hours is my cutoff point so Boston was way out side of that since it’s 21 hours from Starkville.

This morning at 5am I had another example of the reason that some folks just should not fly.

The line to security was insane.  We get up to security and folks are running stuff through the x ray machine.  The guy in front of me has a mallet in his carry on bag.

I am not talking about a little hammer. This monster was at least a foot and a half long. It looked a little like ”Mjolner” the hammer of Thor- the Norse God of Thunder.

Needless to say, the TSA folks freaked.

Steve Snell

www.gundogsupply.com
1-800-624-6378

Post from: Steve Snell's Gundog Blog

Just because it fits in your carry on bag…..

It took me twice as long as it would have if someone else rang me out, but I got to pretend I worked at a grocery store.

Post from: Steve Snell's Gundog Blog

Progress?

Sorry it took me so long to do this.  The holidays were a little busier than I expected.

I only answered the ones that fall into my areas of knowledge (several of these are opinion based and you need to keep that in mind.)  You’ll get different answers depending on who you ask.

The ones at the end will need to be answered by someone else.  A few of them should go to a vet and the others to a breeder.  I really don’t know a lot about the history of the breed.
1. How many times a year do labs go into heat and what are the effects?

Normally every 6 months, but this can vary with the dog. I have found that dogs with irregular cycles tend not to be easy to breed. I normally will not work with a dog during the heat cycle. It tends to cause too much trouble for male dogs in the area and it isn’t worth the risk of her getting lose. We shut them down for around 3 weeks.

2. How do labs differ from a Chesapeake Bay retriever?

You will get many different takes on this (since most of it is opinion based) Labs tend to be a little softer and easier to work with. Chessies can take the cols better but they are harder to train. They also don’t play well with others. They tend to be very protective and will only work for their owner. Keep in mind that this isn’t true of all of them, but many of them are this way. Chessies make great dogs, but you have to be a little more careful with them. Labs can be put into almost any situation and they will do well.

3. Why do labs bite more than other dogs when they are puppies?

Breeding. Labs are mouthy dogs. They love to hold and carry things. Most pups tend to bite as a form of communication, but labs do it more than most breeds. You need to stop it as quick as you can, but don’t over discipline on it.

4. Why are labs such good swimmers?

Breeding again. Their feet and tails are built for swimming. Their coats also shed water quicker than most breeds.

5. Why are you supposed to feed labs large breed dog food instead of just regular dog food?

Some folks feel that higher protein diets make young dogs grow faster and it leads to joint and bone problems.

Some folks feel that the Large Breed diets are a marketing plan and controlling the dogs diet through portions will accomplish the same things.

6. How would you recommend training labs with treats?

I don’t recommend that you do. All training should be based on verbal and physical praise not food.

7. Why does my lab not prefer rawhide bones?

I have no idea. Most dogs like them, but they arn’t really good for your dog, so I wouldn’t worry about it.

9. What conclusions can you draw from the Labradors hunting abilities?

This one is kind of open ended. Labs that are bred to hunt tend to have better noses, bodies and minds for the tasks. Many of the labs out there don’t have these abilities because of bad breeding combinations.

10. Can you list some medical disabilities and the effects they have on the labs life?

The biggest that I see are hip and joint problems. These kinds of genetic defects are common in line bred animals and have to be closely monitored to keep them from happening.

14. What is the lowest temperature a lab can be outside in without having to be brought in?

This depends on the dog and what kind of condition he is in. My labs are ok when it gets down into the teens. Anything below 0 and I will bring them inside. Dogs that live in the extreme north can take a lot more because they are used to it.

Protecting a dog from cold requires that they are kept dry, out of the wind and that they have plenty of calories so they can generate heat.

18. When you are hunting with a lab and they are gun shy what do you do with them? Explain how to gun train them.

You really wouldn’t be hunting with a lab that was gun shy. This should be fixed at a young age.

Gun Shy dogs are created by mistakes that people make. Dogs should be conditioned from birth to gunfire.

We start out pups in the laundry room from day one. This gets them used to lots of banging and noise. We also keep a radio playing around them (Country and Western makes the best hunting dogs This gets them used to sounds, voices and changes in volume.

The next step is to carry a shotgun ( or something that looks like a gun ) around them during feeding time. You want them to see guns on a regular basis and think of them in a positive way.

When the pups are older 3 to 6 months, we start to introduce birds. Quail or pigeons work for this. I like to pull the flight feathers out of one wing and let the dog retrieve the live bird as it flutters to the ground 15 to 20 feet away from him. After you are doing this and he loves it, have your training partner fire a 22 blank pistol about 150 feet away as your dog is chasing the bird. Slowly move the gun in closer over time until you can shoot it while the dog is close to you and still chasing the bird. After you can do this, move out 150 feet away and start over with a 410 shotgun. Move in. Then start over with a 20 and a 12. It will not take long for your dog to connect guns with birds and this is what we are looking for.

22. How do the chocolate labs differ from the black labs and why do some people say that chocolate labs aren’t as good for hunting?

This is opinion based. I have hunted with some great chocolates and some really bad black labs. Black is a more popular color and breeders tend to go with what works.

23. How come my chocolate lab won’t jump into the back of our truck and how do you fix that problem?

It could be several things. Some dogs are not good jumpers. It could also be a sign of bad hips. One of my labs could jump at a younger age but was unable to as he got older.

You can train this with dummies. If he is big enough to reach the truck start throwing dummies into it for him to get. You can also start feeding him in the truck bed. This will get him into it. If you have a raised bed, this might not be a good idea. The last thing you want is for him to fall out trying to get in.

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8. Why do you think they put such a heavy license tax on dogs in Canada around 1885?

11. How does a dog get lime disease and what does it do to the dog?

12. Can a dog catch a disease from a person and if so how do you get rid of it?

13. Why is a lab more likely to get sunburned than a human and if so what SPF rating would be good for them?

15. Why do animals need more water in a cold temperature?

16. How do you know if your dog is too cold?

17. Which two breeds were bred together to make a lab and if you can explain the logic in the breeding process?

19. When and why did Queen Elizabeth start breeding labs?

20. What are the differences between British and Irish labs and do they have an affect on their hunting abilities?

21. Where do English labs come from versus British labs and how do you tell the difference?

24. How do you think the Labrador Retriever impacted the hunting industries and the families of America?

25. How do you train your lab to read and what can it understand by reading?

Post from: Steve Snell's Gundog Blog

Q&A on Labrador Retrievers